Former Illinois Congressmember Joe Walsh announced he is challenging President Trump for the Republican nomination in 2020. Walsh won his congressional seat as a “tea party” candidate in 2010 but served just one term before losing in the next election to Democrat Tammy Duckworth. He was a vocal supporter of candidate Trump in 2016 but said in an interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos Sunday, “I helped create Trump,” but that he now thinks “[Trump] is erratic, he’s cruel, he stokes bigotry.”

He also apologized for past racist comments about President Obama. In 2017, he tweeted, “We LOWERED the bar for Obama. He was held to a lower standard cuz he was black,” and later said Obama was elected because he was black. He also promoted birtherism and made anti-Muslim comments about Obama — even though Obama is not Muslim. Joe Walsh is the second Republican to announce he is challenging Trump, after former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld declared his candidacy in April.